The golden dream of higher education is becoming less attainable. As tuition costs in private colleges reach staggering levels, high school graduates are now pinning their hopes on state-funded academes. In PUP, the throng of young people who turned up for the 2013 PUPCET (PUP College Entrance Test) was perhaps the biggest crowd at any college admission test in history. Despite a limited number of slots, thousands of applicants continue to surge in hopes of getting into the university. Surely anyone would be inclined to take chances. PUP provides quality education for the lowest tuition fee of P12.00 per unit. Every year, more than 55,000 examinees take up the PUPCET but an average of only 11,000 new students are being accepted into the university.
Recently, however, PUP has made some revisions to its admission requirements. The cut-off score is set at 96% and a record low of 8,000 freshmen will be considered for admission. This brings to an overwhelming figure of 47,000 displaced aspirants, including the 3,000 disqualified examinees stemming from the new quota policy. Public colleges and universities could have been the remaining hopes for thousands of less financially privileged high school graduates. Unfortunately, budget constraints and quota limitation have completely shattered their noble desire to pursue a college education. The future looks bleak..
